No, No, No!
by Dixie Dewdrop's Seven Brides
Summary: Adam McFadden learns to appreciate the versatility of one tiny, two letter word as he guides and parents his brothers.
1. Circumstances, Cases, and Incidents

Circumstances, Cases in Point, and Incidents

In the world inhabited by Adam McFadden the simple two letter word "no" addressed a multitude of interactions within a multitude of contexts for a multitude of intentions. In the months when the role of parent had replaced the role of eldest brother, he inadvertently discovered the multipurpose power those two powerhouse letters, _**n**_ and _**o**_ , could yield.

To begin with, uttering a simple _**No!**_ with annoyance meant that whatever plan had just been communicated bordered on the ridiculous and should find itself instantly aborted. To heighten the effect, further explanation generally followed to drive home the absurdity.

The past weekend three particular circumstances necessitated Adam pull out the _**No!**_ in reference to inconceivable actions initiated by his brotherly little darlings.

Circumstance number one starred his eleven year old, Crane, who generally displayed a cooperative and pleasant nature.

Generally he did.

Most of the time he would.

Nonetheless, this particular day Crane's motive appeared to be to destroy Adam's sanity through the visiting and revisiting of the same personal, demanded request. The repetition began from the time the sixth grader stepped off the school bus until homework time finished.

"I never get to do anything I ever want to do!" Crane insisted, stomping from the table to the sink where Adam finished drying the supper dishes. "Ever."

"Not true," Adam contradicted.

"And anyway, you're the one who put me on restriction all those weeks," Crane scowled. "And you snatched away anything fun for me all that time and now it's still happening."

Refusing to lose his temper Adam agreed, "True."

Crane paused a second to gather his thoughts. "Why can't my friends and I camp out? Huh? Everyone else gets to do whatever they want around here."

"Scoot to the right," Adam directed as he juggled a stack of plates. "I need that cabinet."

Crane stayed put, though he turned his body sideways so Adam could access the cabinet.

"Say, Adam!" Crane demanded, his voice rising with frustration.

Adam closed the cabinet door and turned deliberately to regard his brother. "One."

Crane threw his hands into the air dramatically and demanded, "Why are you counting now? I haven't even done anything for you to count!"

"One," Adam explained as he grabbed a stack of bowls to stock, "one is for that disrespectful tone of voice I just heard."

Angry blue eyes met his brother's calm dark ones. Crane crossed his arms across his chest and kicked the leg of the chair nearest him.

"That ratcheted you to two, Little Man," Adam warned him firmly.

Frustrated, Crane contended, "Well, I don't even care!"

Adam drained the sink as he fought to hold his temper in check and to keep a calm perspective. Ninety nine percent of the time the child caused him no trouble. Perhaps this behavior hinted at an early pre-adolescent stab at angst. Still, Adam felt confident little Crane would mature into a mellow, laid back adult in a few years.

"Crane, I'm done with the issue. You already had my permission to invite Ryan and Tyler-your friends- to spend the night Friday. You will not have permission to camp out in the yard this weekend. I have explained more than once that the weather is still too chilly and the ground is still too cold."

The sixth grader snapped, "People camp out in the cold all the time!"

"No!" Adam snapped. He placed both hands on Crane's shoulders and threatened, "My answer is no. I'm finished discussing camping and you will regret it if you bring the issue up again."

"Camping never…"

"Three," Adam announced firmly, pivoting Crane so that he faced the living room. "March up those stairs straight to your room, Crane. You have earned yourself room restriction for the rest of the evening."

"I…"

"Now!"

Crane shrugged out from his brother's hold and stomped to the stairs.

All the way to his room Crane left his pout firmly in place.

Adam watched the child climb the steps and shook his head in bewilderment. It was situations like this that forced him to practice controlling his temper.

In yet another incident requiring a yelled _**No!**_ to demand the termination of a ridiculous action Adam jogged down the stairs one Sunday morning to discover Ford scaling the living room curtains.

For a moment his mind refused to process the visual evidence. His little kindergarten outlaw had actually braced his feet against the wall as he climbed the drapes. Ford's current position put him halfway between the ceiling and the floor.

"No!" Adam yelled as his adrenaline surged. "Ford, stop!" Visions of the drapery rod buckling and the baby crashing onto his head on the hardwood floor flashed before him.

The kindergartner froze in place at the command but relaxed to grin gleefully at his brother. "See me, Adam? Look how high I can go!"

"No, no stop!" Adam repeated, reaching up to grab the child around the waist. "Right now! Stop before you fall. What did you hope to accomplish with that stunt?"

Ford scowled and struggled to squirm his body away from Adam's grip. "Let go of me."

"Absolutely not," Adam assured him. "Turn loose of the curtains, Ford. I've got you."

His baby brother balked. "I just now got all the way up here nearly to the top and I don't want to turn loose!"

By standing on his tiptoes Adam managed to pry the small fingers from the drapery lifeline. Ford kicked his heels into Adam's ribs and strained his whole body to elude his brother's grip.

Adam clutched him firmly, though, and swung the child over to the sofa where he plopped him onto a cushion. "Never ever pull a trick like that one. You could have fallen and cracked your head or broken a bone like Evan."

Clearly angry, Ford drummed his heels against the sofa frame. "Why can't I practice firemen tricks? I never fell and I wouldn't get hurt."

Adam pushed his brother's small feet to the side to stop him from further kicking the upholstery. "Firemen do not climb curtains. They climb ladders."

To demonstrate his opinion of that response Ford threw himself onto his back and decided to brood.

Adam bit the corner of his lip. Even angry, Ford managed to look cute. "Listen, you weigh too much for curtains to hold you or for the curtain rods to hold you. Regardless, you have no business climbing anything inside this house." Adam added sternly, "I had better never find you trying anything that dangerous again."

Along with Crane and Ford, days later another circumstance of responding to a ridiculous situation with _**No!**_ involved Daniel, who even at seven already possessed strong self-confidence.

Apparently while the boys played together near the barn over the weekend they opted to spend time enjoying the daring game, that challenge world over where one participant dared another to perform some activity or deed.

Already they had engaged in progressively harder tests, one of which required balancing along the top rail of the fence while walking a certain distance.

With his turn Evan noted one of their cows chewing grass contentedly across the field. A brilliant idea followed and for the next dare, he demanded Daniel climb onto the cow's back.

Daniel decided to one up Evan and raced to the barn. He re-appeared half carrying and half dragging a saddle and announced he would saddle the cow to cushion his bottom.

Evan and Ford pitched in to help but the trio's united attempts to saddle the poor cow backfired.

The cow's demeanor declined the moment the kids poked and prodded her.

Agitated, she reacted by beginning to stomp and swished wildly.

Luckily Adam rounded the barn and witnessed the boys struggling to harness the poor animal. He shouted, " _ **No!**_ Get that saddle away from the cow!"

Evan and Ford backed away at once but Daniel stood his ground.

Adam jogged to the trio and demanded an explanation.

Two of them cooperated.

Ford and Evan described the circumstances and sheepishly agreed with Adam that the stunt probably would not have ended well.

Adam sent the two younger boys to play in the front yard and directed Daniel to return the saddle to the barn.

Daniel decided to argue with his brother and his brown eyes snapped with anger. "You're mean!" the little villain accused, "and you made me lose the dare and now I'm mad! I didn't even do anything wrong."

"Let me explain something to you," Adam worked to control his temper. "Saddles and cows have nothing in common and the three of you would have ended up hurt. Besides that, you had no business taking that saddle away from the barn or helping yourself to the saddle in the first place. Did you ask?"

Daniel opened his mouth to extend the argument but Adam yanked him against him and covered the child's mouth. "No, Daniel, not another word from you about this or about anything else. Return that saddle right now and then take yourself to the house. Your playtime just ended for the day."

Adam removed his hand and pointed towards the barn. Daniel's eyes filled and he regarded his brother unhappily, but he followed the instructions nonetheless. Adam watched him struggle to return the saddle with a grudging respect for the child's perseverance. The saddle must have weighed fifteen or twenty pounds, roughly half of Daniel's weight.

So three little darlings and three unexpected circumstances reinforced to Adam a simple _**No!**_ bellowed in annoyance would effectively communicate his opinion of really foolish decisions.

Of course, _**No, stop!**_ always insinuated imminent danger hovered frighteningly near the participant. With six brothers as guilty parties Adam had managed to yell that particular response on a number of occasions.

He would yell first and attempt to clamp some control on his rising panic.

A case in point featured six year old Evan as the culprit. Several months before Adam had meandered out of the kitchen clutching a load of laundry, only to discover the first grader climbing over the upstairs bannister rail.

Adam's eyes widened at the danger and his heart began to pound. "No, stop Evan! Freeze!"

Evan halted his actions and regarded his brother quizzically before repositioning himself to straddle the rail.

Adam called frantically. "No, don't move now- you can fall onto the living room floor!"

Evan glanced down the drop to the bottom story of the house and grinned, "No, I want to swing down and jump the rest of the way, Adam."

" _ **No, stop**_!" Adam dropped the laundry basket and vaulted up the stairs. Before Evan could move he yanked his brother off of the rail and clutched him tightly against his chest.

Evan squirmed for release but Adam needed time to reassure himself that no harm had occurred. Once his breathing regulated and his heart slowed he turned the first grader loose.

Then he ensured Evan regretted his decision to scale the railing.

Daniel terrified him just as badly a month later. Crane raced inside to inform him Daniel was about to jump straight from a tree branch onto the roof of the house.

With visions of Evan's broken arm propelling him Adam raced outside.

Crane pointed upwards and he discovered Daniel balancing upright on a branch, poised to jump.

Luckily, Adam's " _ **No, stop**_ Daniel!" effectively ended the stunt. Though disappointed, the second grader chose not to argue.

And like Evan, Daniel decided not to repeat the trick once Adam finished reprimanding him.

Sometimes though, Adam found himself unable to deflect the danger ahead of time. One upsetting event occurred one Saturday when the family had gone shopping in Murphys. Right outside one of the stores something caught Guthrie's eye. He stooped down, fascinated with a yellow and black object which fluttered near the edge of the store building. Adam glanced over too late to stop him and despite yelling "Guthrie, _**no, stop!**_ Don't touch it!" the toddler grabbed a yellow jacket in his little fist.

Adam felt horrible, and Guthrie's screams when the wasp stung him made the entire family grimace in sympathy. Adam cuddled and caressed but it took the toddler nearly a half hour to calm down to shuddery breaths.

Of course Adam also appreciated the power of _**No**_ when the word served as a model of conversational brevity. At times he relied upon that single word to succinctly and successfully cut off further juvenile observations or complaints.

Brian campaigned one particular afternoon and evening to have his curfew extended by an hour. Finally exhausted with the repetitive argument Adam threatened, " **No** , once again, the answer is no, Brian, and if you ask me again in the next six months I will lower your curfew by an hour instead. No."

In response to yet another incident a clear and decisive _**No**_ put a stop to Ford's protests that a second bowl of ice cream wouldn't make him sick to his stomach.

It would.

Adam had witnessed it happen himself.

Last, a simple, strategically inserted _**no**_ silenced Evan on the subject of skipping baths on non-school nights.


	2. Illustrations

Illustrations

As evidenced in a second context Adam had, nevertheless, privately ascertained a drawn out _**Nooo….**_ acted much like applause by hinting the immediate, current conversation overflowed with entertaining and enjoyable details, sort of an anticipatory delight.

Adam had stumbled upon its simplistic beauty through random dealings with his cherubs over the months, of course.

To illustrate, a few weeks prior Brian had burst into the house after school, slung his bookbag towards the sofa, and called excitedly for his brother.

Adam answered him from the laundry room where he was halfway through folding a huge load of bath towels. He grinned at Brian's evident excitement. "What in the world has you so delighted?"

"Coach, Adam," Brian managed to sputter before his attempt at an explanation dissolved into laughter. He held out a hand to signal a timeout to compose himself.

Adam responded to the hilarity by chuckling at his brother's obvious glee. Too few times over the past year had occasions presented themselves for such a degree of unbridled humor.

Adam set the towels on the folding table and ordered impatiently, "Brian, tell me! Quit laughing and let me in on the fun."

It took a couple of more minutes but Brian finally pulled himself together enough to speak coherently. "Adam, remember how Coach always fumbles his words when he gets excited about something?"

Adam nodded knowingly. Coach was none other than the same coach under whom he had played sports during high school. Adam knew him all too well and had a great deal of respect for the man.

Brian leaned against the dryer and pivoted this way and that in an attempt to stretch. "So Coach had us all practicing vaulting out on the field and the landscaping class cut through the field at the exact same time. They needed to get to the greenhouse with their teacher. Remember the new ag instructor I showed you at the Open House back in August? Ms. Hattaway?"

Adam's eyebrows shot up as he recalled the attractive young teacher.

Brian's laughter erupted again and Adam mock chided him, "Get to it, Man! I have sheets to fold after the towels!"

"Okay, okay," Brian prefaced in another attempt at composing himself. "Remember Coach's favorite mantra? I mean that one when he's worked us over out there and players are about to fall out from exhaustion?"

Adam chuckled then, too. "Course I do! Coach has barked that for the past twenty years."

The brothers made eye contact, raised their arms upwards, and chanted in unison, "The best, the best, only your best will do!"

That elicited another wave of laughter.

Brian clapped both hands against his cheeks in an attempt to calm and turn serious. "So, Coach has us out there working and starts yelling out his usual orders. Then he spied Ms. Hattaway and her kids stroll by. Evidently it threw him off his game. And…"

Brian dissolved into gulps of laughter again and Adam grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him playfully. "Carry on, Man! You're killing me here!"

"And Coach yelled," Brian parroted, "The best, the best, and only your breast will do!"

" _ **Noooo**_!" Adam's eyes widened and he slapped his hand over his mouth. "Oh, _**Nooo, nooo,**_ _**nooo**_ …!"

"Yes!" Brian burst into more gales of laughter at Adam's response and the sophomore fell against his brother. His whole body shook. Adam's laughter had erupted as well, and the two brothers clung to each other and laughed until tears filled their eyes.

It took a few minutes to regain control, but when they finally did Adam slung an arm around Brian and exhaled loudly. "Thank you, my star reporter, for sharing the juiciest tidbits from my alma mater. Thank you, thank you!"

Brian wiped his eyes. "Welcome."

"This should teach me a lesson. I should prepare myself in the future whenever I ask if anything noteworthy happened at school." Adam raised his eyebrows.

Brian's display certainly lightened Adam's afternoon, and news two days later from his resident showman, Daniel, illustrated another appropriate reason to employ that same " _ **Noooo**_ …"

Daniel nearly fell off of the bus in his attempt to jump down the steps to race to the house.

Adam heard Daniel calling his name from the kitchen. His mind zipped to Evan's broken arm and a flash of panic sizzled through him- something awful must have occurred on the bus.

He skirted the kitchen table, slipped past Guthrie and vaulted for the front door.

Daniel had run halfway up the drive when Adam wrenched open the door.

"Adam, Adam!" the child hailed. "Adam look!"

When Adam finally reached the child he snatched Daniel into his arms. "What happened? Where's Evan? Are you hurt?"

He clutched the little boy to him and rushed into the house.

Daniel struggled to break free of the embrace. "No, listen," he begged. "Adam, I have something important to tell you."

Daniel squirmed to the floor and unzipped his bookbag, then rooted around inside its depths until he located a piece of paper. He shoved it into Adam's hand.

Adam took a step back before glancing at the paper and told himself to remain calm no matter what that paper described or documented.

Crane's failed test lurked in every corner of his mind.

He sighed. "Tell me what I will see on the paper," he directed Daniel.

The seven year old grinned. "You will see that I got chosen to meet the government for second grade!" Daniel jumped up and down excitedly.

Guthrie immediately copied him, slipped, and landed on his bottom.

Daniel pulled him upright and assured Adam, "He's good."

Adam smoothed Daniel's paper and began reading out loud.

Alerted to a surprise, Ford and Evan climbed onto the sofa to listen.

 _Dear Mr. McFadden,_

 _The Governor of the state of California will visit our school next Monday morning. After a general assembly involving all of the school students the Governor plans to engage in a roundtable discussion with one representative from each grade level. The faculty chose Daniel to represent the second grade class because of his intelligence, personality, and delightfully extroverted nature._

 _Please sign below to permit Daniel's participation in the Governor's visit as well as to extend permission to photograph him during the event._

Adam threw his arms around the child and swung him into the air. " _ **Noooo**_ …Look at what my little entertainer gets to do and the celebrity he gets to meet! You will have an audience with the Governor of California! I am so proud of my boy!"

The younger boys joined in with clapping, allowing Daniel his moment to shine as Adam set him back on his feet.

Daniel beamed with the attention, then slowly took a dramatic bow. "Thank you my fan club of brothers. I will remember all of you when I drive my big airplane to my really big house and I have tons of money."

Adam hugged him again.

The school extended an invitation for parents to watch the roundtable discussion and Adam glowed with pride from the front row.

After the actual event, every time he passed the photograph he had framed of Daniel and the Governor his heart swelled.

Another illustration of _**Nooo**_ …. uttered as an expression of entertainment occurred the day before. Though in a league of its own and not reminiscent of the circumstances lived by Brian and Crane, it still tickled Adam.

The McFadden bambino, Guthrie, reveled in his six older brothers and the older boys heaped attention upon him.

But he was definitely and without dispute the family's baby and his siblings took his protection and care seriously.

From Guthrie's perspective Adam ruled his toddler world as the only parent he recalled, as well as the one who cared for him on a daily basis.

Still, he adored the other five, and he waited impatiently each afternoon for them to return to the house and his personal world. They played with him, read to him, sang to him, and pampered him.

Guthrie tried his best to keep up with the others, but his toddler legs could not match the gaits of his taller brothers. When he attempted to follow for one chore or another someone-usually Adam- would hold him back and insist he wasn't big enough to help.

That frustrated the toddler and his green eyes often filled with tears if they left him behind.

So with his innate intelligence and determination he started mimicking the others at their different tasks. For example, as Brian washed dishes one evening and Evan dried them, Guthrie planted himself on the floor between the two of them. Yanking at Brian's jeans he demanded some of the crockery, but launched himself onto the linoleum when Brian handed him a plastic saucer minus a dish towel.

That time his tantrum backfired. Evidently Adam did not appreciate the ruckus and he plopped the toddler into a Guthrie timeout.

On occasion he won, though, such as when the family worked on homework assignments in the evenings. Guthrie worked right alongside at the table, using fat crayons to cover scratch paper in splotches of energetic color. Or during times when all of the boys lounged over the living room furniture engrossed in books, Guthrie would elbow Ford out of his path to commandeer Adam's lap, then curl comfortably to flip through pages of Dr. Suess books while Adam tried to read them aloud.

One Saturday afternoon Ford waited anxiously on the porch for Brian to return from Murphys. Brian had promised the little fellow a candy bar because several days earlier Ford had permitted Brian to borrow his box of Legos for a school project. Ford paced up and down the porch, scanning the road and field for signs of the jeep and his reward.

A short distance away Adam and Crane replaced a barn door hinge while Daniel and Evan raced their bikes along the driveway.

Suddenly Adam realized that Guthrie had slipped away. The baby had amused himself jumping on and off a pile of hay for several minutes but now the barn stood empty.

Adam scanned the fields and the yard.

He began to panic.

Then Ford burst into view on the porch and Adam sighed with relief once he discovered Guthrie stood right behind his brother.

" _ **Noooo**_ ….." Adam tapped Crane on the shoulder and pointed to the two with a grin. "Check out Ford's twin on the porch."

They focused happily on the porch's occupants.

With hands clasped behind his back Guthrie dogged Ford's every footstep. He imitated Ford's walk and body movements impeccably, paused when Ford paused, and hurried on his own small legs when Ford hurried.

"Will you look at that sight? Guth's a copycat bambino," Adam smiled. "Notice his concentration."

Guthrie's actions provided a great example, but the best illustration of _**Nooo…**_ to reflect surprise or delight occurred a few weeks before and centered upon Crane.

After supper finished and the boys completed homework one Wednesday Adam permitted a single television show before baths began.

The boys scattered at once. Adam only agreed to television viewing a couple of nights each week.

Technically all of them scattered except Crane, who dawdled by the edge of the kitchen table.

Adam noticed him from the laundry room. "Hey, you know the tv is off limits for you, but you can sit in the kitchen and read or go up to your room and do the same."

Crane nodded. "I know."

Adam dumped a clean load of towels onto the folding table and pushed the pile aside to allow himself folding room. When he checked a couple of minutes later Crane remained at the table.

"Or," Adam invited. "You could come help fold and just tell me what's on your mind."

"Ok," Crane obeyed reluctantly and once in the laundry room he scooted to lean against the dryer. He dug in his pocket for a folded piece of paper which he held out to Adam. "You need to see this," he admitted softly.

Warned by the tone and suspicious of the gesture Adam crossed his arms across his chest and snapped irritably. "Crane McFadden, let me make something crystal clear to you. If that paper contains bad news from the school I will make good on my promise and spank you the second I finish reading."

Crane glanced down but didn't respond.

"I expected a wonderful report card and wonderful comments about you two days from now," Adam added in bewilderment. "Crane, you assured me you wanted to get off restriction."

Crane remained silent.

"Hand the paper to me." Adam snapped and exhaled loudly.

Crane finally removed himself from the dryer and deposited the paper in Adam's hand. He watched thoughtfully as his brother unfolded the paper and began to read.

" _ **Noooo**_ …!" Adam regarded him with a look of shock. " _ **Noooo**_ , Crane!" Adam practically chortled, "Oh _**noooo**_ , _**noooo, nooo**_!" He yanked Crane against him with one arm and squeezed the child in a hug. "Look at this, just look at this paper! I am so proud of you!"

Crane smiled shyly and wrapped both arms around his brother. He murmured into Adam's chest, "Did I surprise you?"

"Surprise me? You blew me away! I wasn't expecting your report card until the end of the week."

"Technically it's not the actual card. I just begged my homeroom teacher to make a copy of it for me to bring home early." Crane licked his lips and shoved his hands inside his pockets. "She knows I landed in a bunch of trouble with you about my behavior and grades."

Adam raised Crane's chin and brushed back blond bangs to kiss his forehead. "Yes, well, original or not, I plan for this copy to star as the main display on the refrigerator."

"My teacher also said to inform you the school will send the actual bona fide report card Friday."

Adam winked at Crane and held the grade sheet in front of him at arm's length. "Let me just look at these averages again- 98, 97, 94, 100, 95, and another 97. I do believe all those A's catapulted you onto the Honor Roll. And for the icing on the cake-whew-these comments are fantastic: ' _Hard worker, pleasant and cooperative, conscientious, enjoyable student,_ 'he read.

Crane tiptoed backwards from his brother and shrugged hopefully. "So did I satisfy you? Does this make the cut? Will you take me off punishment now?"

Adam frowned and pretended to think, "I don't know about all that. True the grades and comments impress me, but you did nearly scare me to death and I almost suffered an aneurism. That alone certainly warrants a spanking or some type of grounding…" He narrowed his dark eyes at his little brother and drummed his fingers on the washer lid. "However, I think I'll forgive you and settle for just-"

Adam yanked the little boy to him and began to tickle him. "This!"

Crane dissolved into gales of laughter and Adam added, "Almost gave me a heart attack you ungrateful sixth grader, you!"

Finally Adam stopped tickling and leaned against the folding table before gently pulling the little pre-teen to him. When Crane finally quit giggling and inhaled a deep, steadying breath,

Adam brushed back the blond hair. "You have made my day, Crane. I am just so proud of what you have done."

His little brother smiled shyly. "So may I watch tv tonight?"

"Of course you may watch tv tonight."  
"And I'm not grounded any more?"

"Correct. Punishment's over." Adam regarded him thoughtfully. "But tell me, what did you learn from this whole ordeal?"

Crane blushed and immediately responded. "If my grades or school behavior slip you will punish me."

"Because?" Adam prompted.

"Because that is your expectation."

"What is?"

"That I always work hard and behave at school."

"Or?"

Crane pursed his lips. "Or you will heap unwelcome consequences on my head."

"Okay, then, Little Brother. The entire situation just finished with this piece of paper."

Crane hugged Adam again and buried his face in Adam's chest. "I know I let you down and I am sorry, Adam. I don't want to disappoint you again."

"I believe that, but it's over now. You messed up and I punished you. Then you flipped everything around with a spectacular academic attack."

Crane admitted, "What really makes me glad is that I managed to avoid a spanking."

"I don't doubt it," Adam laughed.


	3. Examples and Representations

Examples and Representations

Polar opposite to the _**Nooo**_ signaling disbelief, Adam learned to embrace _**No, I will not tell you again**_ to imply something unpleasant and unwelcome lurked in the listener's future.

For example, one evening as Adam attempted to carry on a phone conversation with an old girlfriend of his, Chelsea Carter, an argument ignited between Daniel and Evan over a game of Parcheesi. Adam frowned at them from across the room and signaled they get quieter. For almost a minute they obeyed, then the commotion began again.

Adam asked Chelsea to hold on and set the phone receiver on the telephone table.

"This game finished," he announced. "Pack it in the Parcheesi box and put it back on the bookcase."

Whining followed as the response and though at each other's throats moments earlier, Daniel and Evan united to beg for another chance.

"I just issued instructions," Adam repeated, his voice firm. "You made the decision to fight with each other and this is my response to that decision."

He waited for the boys to transfer the game pieces to the box before returning to his conversation with Chelsea. Until she and her mother moved out of town he and Chelsea had been a couple in high school. They had recently reconnected at church where she confided she would be staying in Murphys to visit her dad for a couple of months.

Thus, in the current conversation the one time couple decided to schedule a time to get together.

Or at least they attempted to do so.

At the point where they bantered over details over where to meet a loud shouting match erupted once again.

Adam groaned. "Hold on again, please, Chelsea." He covered the mouthpiece and turned his attention to his mini criminals.

Evan ran to him, "Adam, Daniel keeps…."

"You're the one who keeps on bothering me," Daniel interrupted. "Make him…."

"No!" Adam contradicted. "I have no intention of dealing with you two again. If the two of you cause one more scene I promise I will make you very unhappy. Now find a book or a toy and go sit down."

With glares aimed at each other the boys reluctantly obeyed. Adam watched several seconds before he returned to his conversation once again.

The lull before another outburst lasted less than thirty seconds, or until the time the little sinners began ferociously kicking each other. Angry yells followed and both of them called for Adam's attention.

Trying to salvage anything at all from what had developed into a promising conversation, Adam quickly assured Chelsea he would call her later.

He hung up the phone.

Daniel and Evan had nearly exhausted themselves physically attacking each other and Adam lost patience. "Both of you stand up right now and straighten those cushions!"

The boys exchanged glares but obeyed, a bit worried because of their oldest brother's tone.

"Since you chose to disregard my warnings and also chose to outright disobey me you earned a punishment. You have a half hour in time out and if you have a problem handling that, you'll spend time in your room rather than play. Am I clear?"

The regarded him, and each other, mutinously.

"But Adam, Daniel…" Evan complained.

Daniel interrupted his brother, "Daniel, nothing. You're the one who…."

Adam held out his hand and snapped. "Stop talking. I don't care who did what to whom. Come here, Daniel!"

The child trudged to him then trekked behind him to the kitchen. Adam pointed to the chair Daniel used for meals. "Sit down, don't open your mouth, and be ready to tell me a half hour from now what you can do to avoid punishment in the future."

Daniel scowled and stood by his chair.

" _ **No!**_ I have no intention of telling you again. If I walk over there to put you in that chair I will spank your bottom before I do it."

Daniel climbed onto the seat.

Adam changed his focus to Evan. "Over there," he pointed at a straight back chair in the corner of the living room. "Now."

Evan puffed out his lip but obeyed.

Adam grabbed the kitchen timer from the stove and twirled the dial. "Thirty minutes," he informed them. "You may not talk or get out of those seats. Otherwise the rest of the day will be spent in your room."

He didn't wait for them to respond before adding, "The timer's right here between the two rooms so both of you can see the countdown." He checked them. Daniel had his arms wrapped over the back of his chair while Evan sat on his knees.

Both regarded him mutinously.

Adam dialed Chelsea back while shifting his gaze between the two boys.

When she answered he greeted, "Chels- I have less than thirty minutes in peace, but could I interest you in continuing our earlier conversation until then?"

Not to be outdone, a week later Adam found it necessary to bring out _**Nooo..**_ as an impending threat with an uncooperative kindergarten delinquent.

He stood in the doorway of Ford's room, arms propped on his hips and directed, "Right now, young man. Start cleaning this second. I've wasted far too long coming back to remind you that I want toys off the floor, clothes in the dresser, and your bed made."

Ford regarded Adam unhappily as he leaned on his bed. "I already did clean up some." He popped his hands onto his hips in a perfect imitation of his big brother. "A whole bunch," he insisted.

Adam struggled to remain calm. "Ford, everyone in this house had regular chores plus extra chores this morning. Everyone in this house has finished all of the regular chores and all of the extra chores. Now all of them are enjoying themselves playing or doing something fun they want to do."

Ford puffed his mouth into a pout and scowled.

"Except you, of course," Adam added sadly, deciding to adopt a different approach. "Because you have not dealt with any of your responsibilities." He motioned to the pile of toys and then to the stacks of clean clothes on the bureau. "I want toys where they go and clothes where they go. Then you can play, too."

Not swayed by Adam's psychology, Ford stayed put and Adam snapped irritably, " _ **Noooo…..**_ absolutely not! This will not happen! When you refuse to obey instructions I have explicitly given I will punish you as a consequence."

Adam snatched the empty laundry basket he had planned to take downstairs and marched dramatically into Ford's room.

The little boy watched at first suspiciously and then fearfully as one by one Adam loaded every toy on the floor into the basket. When his train set joined the pile he began to cry.

Adam rested the basket against his hip. "Since you decided to disobey me and not straighten you room you have lost all of these toys until next weekend."

"I'm sorry!" Ford begged, "I will clean them now. I want to put them where they go!"

"Too late for those toys," Adam responded firmly. "Now, I will return to this room in ten minutes. If that bed isn't made and those clean clothes aren't put in drawers at that time, I will also punish you for that. Am I clear?"

Ford nodded and wiped at his eyes. "When I put my clothes up and make up the bed can I have my toys back?"

"Nope," Adam responded. "Toys went because of your behavior. That's done. Ten minutes and the rest of this room had better look the way I want."

Ford went to work.

The month before Daniel had managed to heap trouble upon himself with a disciplinary note from his teacher. The little felon placed it in his brother's hands as soon as the bus brought the boys home one afternoon. "Sign this for my teacher," he advised Adam, pairing the demand with a charming smile. "Please."

Adam pointed him towards his after school snack, washed his hands, and unfolded the note. He read through it once but turned to contemplate the second grader before he made it halfway through the contents.

Daniel peeled his banana and bit off a chunk.

Adam read the note a second time before confronting the child. "Daniel, what do you want to say to me about this note?"

Daniel regarded him impishly. "Nothing, 'cause all I did was play at recess."

"This note says you went onto the field after the teacher told you to stay on the playground with the class."

"I chased somebody."

"Onto the field? Why were you chasing someone?"

"She kissed me and I had to chase her so I could kiss her back." Daniel elaborated.

Despite his annoyance with the second grader's behavior Adam had to conceal a smile at the little lothario.

Evan took a swallow of juice and set his glass down on the table. "I saw that," he confirmed. "Daniel ran really, really fast but then the teacher got really, really mad."

Adam passed Ford a banana and questioned Daniel. "So why did the teacher send a note to me about your behavior?"

"I don't know." Daniel scowled.

"Yes you do."

"I suppose because maybe second graders can't play on the field."

"Right, and when you are at school my expectation is that you obey your teacher or any other adults at the school. We have discussed that at length."

Daniel could tell where the conversation would lead. This note marked the fourth note home for him this year. He kicked into the chair in front of him.

Adam ignored that but pressed the child. "And you know that misbehaving at…."

"But I already got punished and had to sit on the timeout bench all the rest of recess!" Daniel interrupted.

"Do not interrupt me again," Adam warned sternly. "When you cut up at school you will always find yourself in trouble at home. I am unhappy with your school behavior today. When you are directed to do something, you do it. Am I clear?"

"Adam I don't want you to punish…."

"Let me repeat this, am I clear Daniel?"

Daniel threw himself dramatically against the back of the chair. Evan and Ford watched him with interest.

"One," Adam began to count.

"Okay!" Daniel responded irritably. "I understand all that."

"Now, because you made the decision to ignore your teacher you are trading play time to march yourself upstairs to your room for room restriction the rest of the afternoon."

"I want to play some!"

"Absolutely not," Adam reinforced the decision. "Since you finished your juice and banana already go use the bathroom and then straight to your room. I'll check on you in a little bit."

Despite Adam's unyielding stance, Daniel hoped for a reprieve and muttered. "I said I would stay only on the playground. I told my teacher that, that I would not go on the field any more."

Losing patience, Adam strode to the table, grasped Daniel under the arms, and set him on the floor. He pointed the child towards the upstairs.

Daniel protested, "But,"

" _ **Nooo!**_ Do not say another word, my Little Man. If you have not marched yourself up those stairs and into your room by the time I count to three you will find yourself across my lap for a spanking. One…."

"Go, Daniel," Ford advised helpfully. "the spanking hurts."

Daniel capitulated and made it to his bedroom before Adam's count of two.

Besides Ford and Daniel, Adam also found it necessary to employ that same warning _**Nooo**_ _…._ with the youngest McFadden.

Though generally a pretty agreeable and cooperative baby, when Guthrie zeroed in on an object of interest he developed a tunnel vision towards possessing it.

An example occurred the day before when Guthrie decided to confiscate the library book Crane had set down on the coffee table. When Crane returned and reclaimed it Guthrie threw himself onto the floor and staged a loud meltdown.

Crane attempted to soften the blow, "Sorry, Guth, but _Tex_ is for me to read. The library just got it in and I waited all month to read it."

Guthrie's enraged screams increased in volume and intensity.

Crane added placatingly, "You really wouldn't like Hinton's books right now."

Brian offered the toddler one of Guthrie's own well loved Little Golden Books in place of _Tex_.

Guthrie rejected that with a furious yell and a drumming of his feet against the coffee table.

Other than reminding the toddler the book belonged to Crane Adam ignored the display and continued working in the kitchen.

Not pleased with the direction the situation had taken Guthrie changed his tactics. He sat up and surveyed the living room to pinpoint the whereabouts of his brothers. They deliberately ignored him.

Since the coast appeared fairly clear he pulled himself up, gained his balance, and hurried to snatch Crane's book again, this time right out of Crane's hands.

" _ **Nooo**_!" Adam ordered from the kitchen. "Guthrie, stop!"

Determined to grab his prize Guthrie proceeded by grabbing hold of some of the pages, only to have Adam thwart his plan. Adam yanked him away from the coffee table and hauled him into the kitchen. He plopped Guthrie into his high chair and fastened the restraint to immobilize the toddler.

Adam spoke conversationally over Guthrie's screams of rage. "All right, Guthrie, let this incident confirm that crime does not pay. You have a bit of timeout you earned." Adam reached over for the kitchen timer and pointed to it as he set it. "You can't take your brother's things and you can't disobey when I tell you to stop. When the timer rings I will let you get down to re-join the others."

Adam ignored Guthrie's bellows of rage and walked out of the kitchen. He would spring the little tyke shortly, but Guthrie needed the lesson. He had matured enough to appreciate behavior and consequences.

Adam had warned him.

Adam leaned against the television and waited out of sight of the toddler. The others boys read contentedly, lost in the pages of all of their books.

Adam glanced up at the family photos framing the stairs and muttered to himself, "Sixteen more years. I can hold on that long. Sixteen more years and I will have reared all of them. I will either celebrate or curse my empty nest."

Of course _**no**_ may also mean more than just _**no**_. Adam adopted a dramatically uttered _**No, no, no!**_ tosignal disbelief at events or actions befalling the McFadden family's transgressors.

To illustrate, the first incident starred Crane as culprit. Adam asked him to run a bath for the Itty Bitties because he had his hands full with the laundry.

So Crane did.

Unfortunately, though, Crane took himself right back downstairs and curled onto the sofa with a book.

Several minutes later Brian walked through the front door and froze at the sight before him. From the upstairs landing a veritable river of water had begun to cascade off the upper floor and splatter the stairs.

Brian yelled for Adam and the two brothers raced to staunch the flow of water they assumed gushed from a broken water pipe.

Adam met Brian's appraising gaze. " _ **No, no no**_!"

"Oh wow," Brian offered as an understatement, fighting to keep his balance as he waded through the deluge.

Inevitably they discovered the source of the problem when Crane slipped up behind them, stared at the damage and shrugged his shoulders. "Uhm, sorry…."

Adam delivered a blistering lecture on responsibility then ordered the culprit to march back downstairs to grab the mop. The three of them worked for nearly a half hour before Adam allowed the younger boys to venture upstairs.

Crane finally appeared to grasp the seriousness of his negligence. He hauled the mop and several sodden towels downstairs and loaded the washer and returned just as Adam and Brian tiredly trudged their way down the stairs.

"I'll start the bath for the boys again," Crane spoke hesitantly, then assured his brothers, "and this time I will not leave the bathroom with the water running."

Horrible as the mistake had been, after that night the entire family strained to listen anytime they heard bath water running.

Brian unwittingly set off the next transgression by deciding to climb the first couple of shelves of the laundry room's shelving unit to grab an extra box of laundry detergent.

Ignoring the indoor step ladder stored in the same room he grabbed the sides of the storage frame instead and pulled himself up a couple of shelves.

Brian realized his error once items from the top shelves began raining down from above. He confirmed it when he felt the entire framework break loose from its fasteners.

Brian let out a yelp and jumped to the floor, then threw up his arms hoping to prevent the entire unit from crashing on top of him.

Luckily Adam rescued his brother within seconds and they righted the shelving unit together. Adam gazed in disbelief at the floor where the contents of the shelves had toppled and scattered.

" _ **No, no, no!**_ What in the world happened here?" He massaged his temples and regarded Brian.

His misguided teen brother confessed the mistake and explained his faulty reasoning.

At least Brian sheepishly admitted that the idea had not been a good one.

That particular mishap took two hours for the two eldest to fix. For good measure, they re-anchored the frame and fastened the shelves to the wall.

Adam incorporated that occurrence to include all of the boys in a lesson over why they should never climb shelves.

The younger set created some mishaps also. Ford, Evan, and Daniel provided the next case in point by ramming Ford's wagon into the jeep's tire and flattening it.

The boys had played hard outside all that afternoon and took turns pulling each other in the wagon. They decided to ramp up the fun by racing the wagon through the yard. Two pushed and pulled while one rode.

At Evan's turn to drive, he held onto the steering handle of the wagon and shrieked with laughter as Ford and Daniel pushed the wagon from behind. The boys managed to shove Evan into a running start before Daniel tripped over a piece of sod and fell. Ford went down beside him.

Unhurt, the two brushed themselves off and raced after Evan, who had turned to check on his brothers. Thus, the wagon crashed straight into the jeep and unfortunately, the wagon's tongue punched a hole in the right rear tire.

The impact sent Evan flying out of the back and he landed with a skid, scraping both knees.

Adam witnessed Evan's accident from the barn and had already begun jogging to the boys. When he saw Evan catapult from the wagon, however, his mind immediately flew to Evan's broken arm from a couple of months before. " _ **No, no, no**_!" he yelled, sliding to a stop and yanking the first grader to his feet.

Adam hastily wiped away dirt and debris and began squeezing body parts. "Does this hurt? How about this?"

"Ow!" Evan complained. "Adam you're hurting me!"

"Yeah, well, see how you'll feel if all the rest of your bones have broken!" Adam replied with a snap.

"I can move my arms and legs," Evan confirmed. "I just scraped my knees."

Adam turned him loose and scrutinized him from head to toe. Finally satisfied, he motioned the boys away. "Put up the wagon and go clean up for supper."

Daniel tugged the wagon away from the jeep. "Oh wow, take a look at that great big scrape," he pointed. He stooped for a closer look and then scrambled upright. "Adam, look! The tire is falling."

"What?" Adam hurried over to assess the damage. " _ **No, no, no**_! That wagon punched a hole in the tire." He turned to regard his brothers.

The little offenders exchanged worried glances with each other. Ford murmured, "We're sorry."

Daniel and Evan nodded their agreement.

Evan licked his lips. "We'll just go put the wagon up and get clean like you told us."

Adam sighed heavily and put his hands on his hips. "Boys?"

One brunette head and two blond ones pivoted together and Adam managed a weak smile. "I'm not mad, Boys. It was an accident."

They exchanged grins and dashed for the house.

Yes, in the new normal of the life lived as parent and guardian, Adam McFadden had evidently learned to appreciate the versatility of that two letter, power packed, _**No!**_ From one crisis to another he had guided, comforted, and corrected his brothers over the months, and he had concluded the crucial component of survival boiled down to communication.

No, make that the crucial component of his own survival boiled down to communication, even if that communication went no further than _**No!**_


End file.
